Beihai Park – White Dagoba 白塔

The centre of the scenic spot of Jade Flower Island 琼华岛 in Beihai Park is Temple of Eternal Peace 永安寺, and the core of Temple of Eternal Peace is the White Dagoba 白塔.

White Dagoba 白塔 is an integral part of Temple of Eternal Peace 永安寺, aka Yongan Temple. It was built in 8th year of Qing Shunzhi reign (1651) by Emperor Shunzhi 清顺治帝 (name Fu Lin 福临, posthumous title Shizu 世祖) at the suggestion of Tibetan Lama Naomuhan 恼木汗 at the site of Yuan dynasty monastery Guanghan Hall 广寒殿.¹

Zhishan Bridge 陟山桥

Coming from East Gate 东门 entrance of Beihai Park 北海公园, the first scenic spot you will come across is Zhishan Bridge 陟山桥, a stone bridge connecting the shoreline to Jade Islet 琼华岛 and Yong’an Temple 永安寺 complex.

According to the “Record of Technology” 《辍耕录》², a stone bridge was built here during the Yuan Dynasty Zhiyuan (Kublai Khan) reign (1264-1294). In the fifth year of Qing Qianlong reign (1740), the old bridge was demolished and rebuilt into a triple-arch sandstone bridge. The position was moved slightly south to where the current Zhishan Bridge is. The bridge is 32 metres long and 7.1 metres wide.³

Zhishan Bridge Pailou 陟山桥牌楼

Zhishan Bridge Pailou 陟山桥牌楼 uses a system of interlocking wooden brackets called Yuntou Ruyi Dougong “云头如意斗拱”. The wooden joinery is one of the earliest examples of modern mortise and tenon joints. Bracket sets became smaller and more numerous, and brackets could be hung under eaves, giving the appearance of graceful baskets of flowers while continuing to support the roof.⁴

This process can be repeated many times, and rise many stories, each layer of dougong joinery providing a broader, and more stable surface area for the beam. Like this example, the dugong not only supports an elaborate system of eight eaves and four beams interlined with three pattern boards, the entire system jutted out by 45˚ forming a beautiful pattern that resembles cumulus cloud formation.⁵

The pailou is supported with inverted V-shaped brace and pole 戗杆. There are four of braces on the east side and two braces on the west side. There is a stone-carved divine beast under each pole, a total of six. One east side, the outermost two are stone lions, the ones in the middle are Kirins 麒麟.⁶ The ones on the west side are Xiezhi 獬豸, which is the Chinese version of the unicorn.

Hall of the Pearl of Wisdom 智珠殿

Located at the eastern foothill of Jade Islet 琼华岛 and along the same east-west axis as Zhishan Bridge 陟山桥, Zhizhu Hall 智珠殿, or Hall of the Pearl of Wisdom, was built in 16th year of Qianlong reign 乾隆十六年 (1751) on a half-moon-shape terrace called Prajna Fragrance Terrace 般若香台. This hall of vermilion walls and green roof tiles has a symmetrical layout (semi-circular) rarely seen in Chinese architecture.

Zhishan Bridge Pailou, aka Zhizhu Pailou 智珠牌楼, was built because in Fengshui an incense terrace should not face directly the front door. In this case, Terrace of Prajna Fragrance and the East Gate of the park formed a straight line, so Emperor Qianlong asked the craftsmen to build the pailou in between the two.

Four pailous (archways) forms the corners of the semi-circular terrace that is also called Crescent Terrace 半月城. It is a perfect place to enjoy spring scenery and to rest, as Emperor Qianlong often did.⁷ Prajna is understanding the inherent emptiness of dependent origination, and knowing that true emptiness is only possible because of wondrous existence.⁸

A statue of Manjusri Bodhisattva 文殊菩萨, aka Bodhisattva of Pearl of Wisdom⁹ was enshrined here. This is a brand new statue installed here during the 2006 overhaul.¹⁰

“Hall of Ancient Heritage” 古遗堂 is most likely a modern addition along the path up the hill as I could not find anything about the building except that it was built in 35th year of Qianlong reign (1770). It overlooks the Northeast hillside of the island, which is one of the eight scenic spots of ancient Beijing “燕京八景”.¹¹ Behind the building is a winding pathway called “Hill Climbing Corridor” 爬山廊 that leads to “Spring Sighting Pavilion” 见春亭.¹²

The White Dagoba 白塔

Erected in the eighth year of Qing Shunzhi reign 清顺治八年 (1651), the White Dagoba 白塔 stands at 35.9 meters high. The pagoda was badly shaken by earthquakes which occurred respectively in 1679 (the eighteenth year of Emperor Kangxi) and 1730 (the eighth year of Emperor Yongzheng), and was rebuilt on both occasions.

A dagoba is a dome-shaped structure that houses sacred Buddhist relics. The word “dagoba” comes from the Pali word dhātugabbha and the Sanskrit word dhātugarbha, which means “having relics inside”. Dagobas are also known as stupas and chaityas.

In the subsequent years, the pagoda had been given regular maintenance. It was overhauled in 1964. The upper part of the pagoda, the brass tip on top of the pointed white cone, which is called the “thirteen heavens” canopy (”十三天“), collapsed during the 1976 Tangshan earthquake and was restored in the next year.

In 2005 the White Dagoba and the rest of the buildings on the Jade Islet went through the largest architecture restoration in a century.¹³ You can still see the cracks from the earthquake. The black squares are ventilation holes which you cannot see from afar.

After the White Dagoba was built, there were a tall “five tiger” pole “五虎杆” and bronze signalling cannons behind the pagoda, and the Royal Infantry were stationed there. In the early period of Qing Dynasty, the country was not yet politically stable. These pole and cannon system was used as an early warning mechanism of disturbance in the city.

This being the highest point in Beijing, a lookout was set up here to observe the movement in the city. Once there is an emergency, the warning flag will be raised during the day, and lit lanterns will be hung at night. The Eight Banners garrison will be deployed to suppress any rebellion at any time. It was no longer used in the later period of Qing Dynasty.¹⁴

善因殿与白塔在同一月台之上，月台四周是中式寻仗汉白玉栏杆，柱头为云龙浮雕。月台四周设排水螭首。寻仗栏杆因其扶手形似寻杖而得其名，由柱头，望柱、寻杖、净瓶、华板等构件组成。

Hall of Good Cause 善因殿

Shanyin Hall 善因殿, or Hall of Good Cause, was built in 16th year of Qianlong reign 乾隆十六年 (1751), together with Pavilion of Enchanting Scenes 引胜亭, and Pavilion of Refreshing Mist 涤霭亭.

The hall is a glazed heavy eaves building with ceramic tiles imitating the wood structure. The upper eaves made of bronze are round pavilion-style roofs, and the lower eaves made of ceramic tiles are square roofs, symbolising the Chinese concept of “the Heaven is round, and the Earth is square” (“天圆地方”).¹⁵ Unfortunately it is currently out of bounds for conservation purposes.

There are 455 pieces of tiles around the exterior of the building, each casts with a sitting statue of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life 无量寿佛 or Amitābha 阿弥陀佛 wearing ochre-coloured robe. These tiles were installed in 1980s. The originals were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution and subsequent 1976 Great Earthquake.¹⁶

According of “Records of the Three Seas”《三海见闻志》, a book recording the sights and history of Zhongnanhai and Beihai by Li Jingming 李景铭,¹⁷ Hall of Good Cause is made up of a vault that used to house a gilded bronze statue of Yamāntaka 大威德金刚, but the statue was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). And there is a bronze incense burner under the arch door based on 1900s photograph, and you can still find the pedestal of the burner still there.¹⁸

Linguang Hall 琳光殿

This is one of the Buddhist temple hall mentioned in inscriptions of the White Dagoba stele 《白塔山记》 by Emperor Qianlong, ” Walking downhill from Shuijing Wall 水精域 (Wall of the Old Wall) is Ganlu Hall 甘露殿 (Hall of Sweet Morning Dew), and downhill from Ganlu Hall is Linguang Hall 琳光殿 (Hall of Light of Buddha); beyond that it is a flat walkway.” ¹⁹ These three buildings form a straight line from the western elevation of White Dagoba hill.

White Pagoda in Slender West Lake

Legend has it that Emperor Qianlong went to Yangzhou and toured the Slender West Lake 瘦西湖 during one of his Excursions to the South. He commented that although the scenery was good, there was no white pagoda in the Slender West Lake. Therefore, after discussions among the salt merchants in Yangzhou, they immediately built the white pagoda of Lotus Spirit Temple 莲性寺 on the banks of the Slender West Lake, modelled after the White Dagoba of Yong’an Temple.²⁰

Of course, this legend was not verified (like so many of Qianlong’s legends) and provided here for entertainment.

About Beihai Park 北海公园

Scroll left or right of the image using the arrows or your mouse horizontal axis wheel

Beihai Park 北海公園 was originally Beihai 北海, or North Sea, of the “Three Seas of the Imperial Western Gardens” 西苑三海 of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It is located within the Imperial City, northwest of the Forbidden City, and was the royal garden only for enjoyment by the royal family of the Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, spanning across a period of almost a thousand year. In 1925, it was opened to the public as a park. 

As with many of Chinese imperial gardens, Beihai was designed to imitate renowned scenic spots and architecture from various regions of China, particularly Jiangnan around the Yangtze Delta. Various aspects of the park evoke the elaborate pavilions and canals of Hangzhou and Yangzhou, the delicate gardens of Suzhou, and the natural scenery around Lake Tai with its famously porous stones. Beihai Park itself is now reckoned one of the masterpieces of Chinese gardening and landscaping.

The park is opened all year round, and can be accessed from four gates, two on the southern end (West and South gates), one in the north (North gate) and one on the east side (East gate). The park would need at least 4 hours to see everything.

Opening hours for the park are 6am – 9pm (peak season, Apr-Oct), 6.30am – 8pm (off peak, Nov-Mar); Opening hours for the attractions are 8am – 6pm (peak season), 8.30am – 5.30pm (off peak)

Visited May 2023

Footnotes :

1. 白塔位于琼花岛的顶部，清顺治八年（1651年），清世祖福临应一位西域喇嘛（后赐号“恼木汗”）之请，在元代广寒殿的旧址上修建。因属于北海永安寺范围，故亦称永安寺白塔。建筑占地面积1650平方米，建筑面积597.07平方米。白塔全部为砖木石混合结构，由塔基、塔身、相轮、华盖、塔刹五部分组成。https://gygl.beijing.gov.cn/whgy/whgy_wsgc/201912/t20191206_885792.html ↩︎
2. 《南村辍耕录》，又称《辍耕录》，共三十卷，元末陶宗仪作品。汉语中的“三姑六婆”一词，就出自《南村辍耕录》。 https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-sg/南村輟耕錄 ↩︎
3. https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
4. 陟山桥牌楼最大的特点是采用了“云头如意斗拱”。斗拱是我国古建中特有的承重结构，从名称就知道其由斗——方形的木墩和拱——矩形断面的短枋木，形似弓的两种基本构件组成。“斗”是旧时常用的量具，斗拱中的“斗”借用其形，实则是个上宽下窄的实心木墩。拱有横纵之分，横向的叫“拱”，纵向的叫“翘”，若翘出头做成向下的斜尖则称“昂”。斗支持其上的拱木，拱上再托斗，如此循环往复，这就是斗拱最基本的构成逻辑。单昂（仅一个昂）单翘（仅一个翘）五踩斗拱各部分名称简图。
   清代建筑中，斗拱以坐斗为中心向内、向外挑出，称之为“出踩”，每多出一排拱，就多出一踩。出踩数的计算方式是出踩数=（翘数+昂数）×2+1。翘昂斗拱的出踩数图例。再看看北海公园堆云牌楼，其主楼为双翘三昂十一踩斗拱。
   陟山桥牌楼的“如意斗拱”指除了垂直相交的的拱以外，又斜向45°又出斜拱，相邻的斜拱相交，在交点处再加斗出上一层的拱，从而造成了上下两层散斗的错位排列，从正面看，就形成了一张网状的斗拱图形。这种如意斗拱在民间应用较多，是一种装饰性极强的斗拱样式。
   https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
5. 牌楼的主楼檐下悬带有八根垂莲柱的垂花门罩，斗拱下的额枋共有四根，间三根花板。额枋彩画为龙锦方心旋子彩画，每根花板有五幅镂空图案，正中的图案从上至下分别是坐龙、洪福齐天和法轮草。左右次楼檐下同样悬有垂花门罩，带有6朵垂花。斗拱下两道额枋间一根花板，额枋的龙锦方心旋子彩画与正楼略有不同，等级要低；镂空花板图案为四只瑞兽。https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
6. 牌楼设有戗杆支撑，东侧有四根戗杆，西侧有两根，每根戗杆下都有一只石雕神兽，一共六只。东侧四只戗杆兽的最外两只是石狮，中间两只是麒麟。下图远处是石狮，近处是麒麟。麒麟自古被认为是瑞兽，不同时期的外形特点也多有差异，但有两个特点独具“肉角、蹄足”。此处石麒麟头上肉瘤高耸，瞋目张口，额须下垂，颈部鬃毛后拂，鼻翼处伸出触须。肩部披毛呈火焰形，躯干有规则鳞片，足为蹄。
   西侧两根戗杆下的戗兽为獬豸，其易与麒麟混同，都是独角，但獬豸的角通常尖细且硬质，另一个区别在爪部，麒麟是蹄爪，而獬豸是兽爪，且獬豸身上无鳞片。
   https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
7. 智珠殿，半月城位于琼岛东麓山脚下，坐西面东与陟山桥相对，建于乾隆十六年（1751年）。智珠殿建在半月城城台上，红墙绿瓦，雄伟壮观，四面有五个牌楼相对，中轴对称、布局别致是我国古建筑中比较少见的，殿内原供奉文殊菩萨一尊。半月城因其城池呈半月形俗称半月城。乾隆年间始建称之为般若香台，所以半月城亦称般若香台，据说股若香台在琼岛春阴景中，是观景小憩之佳处，乾隆皇帝常在此处观景、饮茶。 (Taken from display sign at the location) ↩︎
8. https://foguangpedia.org/blog-post/what-is-prajna-2/ ↩︎
9. In Buddhism, “Pearls of wisdom” symbolize the profound teachings and truths shared by the Bodhisattva, serving as guidance for humanity’s journey towards enlightenment and deeper understanding of existence. https://www.wisdomlib.org/concept/pearls-of-wisdom#:~:text=Buddhist%20concept%20of%20’Pearls%20of%20wisdom’&text=In%20Buddhism%2C%20%22Pearls%20of%20wisdom,and%20deeper%20understanding%20of%20existence.&text=(1)%20The%20profound%20truths%20and,share%2C%20guiding%20humanity%20towards%20enlightenment. ↩︎
10. 2006年大修之后，恢复殿内陈设，供奉文殊菩萨。现殿内的新佛像。 https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
11. 琼岛春阴是著名的燕京八景之一，燕京八景的提法和选定是在金代，最早见于金朝的《明昌遗事》中，时名“琼岛春阴”。明代的《宛署杂记》中叫”燕台八景”，时名“琼岛春云”。明代永乐年间曾有画作描绘了琼岛春云：云雾缭绕于山水之间，殿宇深藏，石峭峰高，直若海里仙山，渺渺不知何方。明 王绂（fú）《燕京八景图卷》之“琼岛春云”（局部）中国国家博物馆藏 https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/383396624 ↩︎
12. 琼岛的东北坡古木参天，这里便是”燕京八景”之一的”琼岛春荫”。 沿着乾隆帝御题的”琼岛春荫碑”旁的小路前行，可直通迂回曲折的”见春亭”和”看画廊”。 https://www.visitbeijing.com.cn/article/47QsyuxdlbI ↩︎
13. 建于清顺治八年（1651年），塔高35.90米。清康熙十八年（1679年）及雍正八年（1730年）均因地震裂缝而重修过。嗣后历年都进行过修葺，1964年进行过加固大修，1976年唐山地艰波及北京，塔上’十三天”被震毁，1977年修复，2005年对白塔及琼华岛古建筑群进行了近百年来最大规模的修缮。
    塔前的善因殿是乾隆十六年（1751年）添建的，亭为重檐，上层圆顶筒瓦、板瓦、宝顶均为铜质鎏金。下层方檐为琉璃制品，墙面用455块塑有佛像的琉璃被镶砌而成，南面为铜制的四扇隔扇门，里面曾供奉”大威德金刚神像”一孽。 (Taken from display sign at the location)  ↩︎
14. 白塔建成后曾在塔后设有高大的”五虎杆〞和铜铁质信炮，驻过亲兵。清初国家尚未稳定，利用此处制高点观察城内动静，安放信炮（鸣放信号的炮），立五虎号杆（悬挂五色旗子和号灯的旗杆）。一旦有突发事件，白天升旗，夜间悬灯，随时指挥八旗军马平叛，清代后期不再使用。
    ↩︎
15. 台阶之上就是善因殿，善因殿建于乾隆十六年（1751），是一座仿木结构的琉璃重檐建筑，上檐是圆亭式顶，下檐是方形顶，象征着“天圆地方”。
    乾隆十六年（1751年），又增建善因殿及引胜、涤霭二亭。乾隆三十九年（1774年），于二亭内各立一碑，分别镌刻乾隆御制《白塔山总记》和《白塔山四面记》。 (Taken from display sign at the location)  ↩︎
16. 善因殿四面均用琉璃砖装饰，每块琉璃砖上有一尊佛像，共贴着455尊身着酱赭色袈裟的无量寿佛坐像。1917年，善因殿墙面的佛砖。1933年，永安寺塔前善因殿外墙上的佛砖。 这些墙面的佛砖在十年中尽毁，后来又遇76年强震。地震后的惨状。现在的佛砖为80年代新烧制的。 https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/381626037 ↩︎
17. 适园主人，据今人吴空考证，当为李景铭。吴空在其所著《中南海史迹》一书的参考书目中，直接引作“李景铭《三海见闻志》”。李景铭字石芝，福建闽侯县人。光绪三十年（一九○四）进士。宣统元年（一九○九），他与方兆鳌东渡日本，考察邮政，合编《调查日本邮电堂报告书》二卷。民国二年（一九一三）被选为政治会议议员，出任北京政府财政部赋税司司长。 https://baike.baidu.com/item/三海见闻志/1485954 ↩︎
18. 据《三海见闻志》载善因殿“殿作穹窿式，门下有铜炉一”。 https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/381626037 ↩︎
19. 在乾隆帝御笔的《白塔山记》里（这部白塔山记可拍下了1个亿，创了书画作品拍卖
    的记录）这样写道：“水精域之下为甘露殿，又下为琳光殿，则就平路，为山西之路。” https://wenku.baidu.com/view/84145332497302768e9951e79b89680202d86b72.html?_wkts_=1740989169996&needWelcomeRecommand=1&unResetStore=1&ILK=17409891-0591-0684-0626-756130765384 ↩︎
20. 永安寺白塔历来是皇城北海的象征，也是中国佛塔中皇家佛塔的经典之作。中国对覆钵式塔最熟悉的普及了解当属北海白塔，这是藏传佛教入主中原帝都的象征，也是中国汉藏佛教在清代融合的开始。相传清乾隆帝下江南，在扬州瘦西湖就提出湖虽好，但没有白塔，所以扬州的盐商们会商后，立刻仿建永安寺白塔建造起了瘦西湖畔的莲性寺白塔。本文来自:寺庙信息网/www.xlhc.net ; 原文链接：https://xlhc.net/321.html ↩︎